Archive By Section - Local news

County and city leaders have gathered on St. Simons Island for the annual county-wide planning workshop to discuss initiatives, community issues and updates on topics from last year's meeting. Jeff Ricketson, executive director of Liberty Consolidated Planning Commission, opened the meeting by having everyone sharing what makes them Liberty County-proud.

An estimated 200 people attended a public meeting on a proposed pipeline at the Richmond Hill city center Tuesday to hear information and voice their opinions. Vice President of Public Affairs Allen Fore from Kinder Morgan, the company proposing the pipeline, gave a 10-minute speech about its proposal and the reasoning behind placing a pipeline along the coast of Georgia, including Bryan, Liberty and Long counties.

Dispatchers in Liberty County's 911 center spend hours in front of computer monitors in a dimly-lit, windowless room fielding calls that they don't know whether they'll be about a noise complaint or a shooting.

The company hoping to build a pipeline through Coastal Georgia needs to make sure it does everything it can to protect the environment if its project is approved, U.S. Rep. Buddy Carter said during a Friday morning stop in Richmond Hill.

In the upcoming 2015 election, Liberty County wants to put the Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) back on the ballot after a measure to renew it was defeated in last year's midterm election. The tax officially expired March 31, meaning the sales tax in Liberty County is now 6 percent, 1 percent lower than surrounding counties.

Faith-based groups, businesses and members of the public from eastern Liberty County had a chance to learn about a proposed prison re-entry program during a meeting Monday at Wilderness Baptist Church in Midway.

Editor's note: This article has been revised to reflect a correction, which will appear in Sunday's print edition. The Liberty County Board of Commissioners received the fiscal-year 2016 budget for the Liberty County Convention and Visitors Bureau earlier this month. An article on page 10A Wednesday incorrectly stated that the commissioners approved the budget, but the CVB's board approves its own spending plan. The commissioners simply received a copy of the budget.